Your top
five questions
about living
in Derby

We've answered the top five questions we receive about living in Derby so you can catch up on what there is to know about being a student here.

1. Is Derby a big city?

We're a big-little city, with a population of over 250,000. With a large indoor shopping centre, a range of bars and restaurants and leisure facilities like our own Derby Theatre, plus the cycling velodrome arena, you should find there's everything you need - but on a scale where they're close enough to keep everyone together!

Students in a cafe

2. What is it like in Derby?

Derby is a diverse and neighbourly city, with green open spaces, and a mix of high street and bustling independent places to shop, eat and drink. Our central UK location gives you the best of all worlds - everything you need is close by, whether you want a day out in the Peak District or a trip to London via a 90-minute train. As a student, you'll be able to live quite centrally, either in our accommodation or privately. And as a city that's home to some big-name industries, you may find it's a great place to stay after university as well.

3. Which halls of residence are closest to each site?

One of the benefits of coming to Derby is that all our accommodation is located close to our campus sites and the city centre.

We think you'll be happy with the location of whichever hall you choose, but if we were to measure exactly, these are the halls you would arrive at first from each site:

A group of students in one of our halls

4. How do I get to the campus from the train station?

Derby Train Station and Derby Bus Station are both stops for our Unibus service, which can also take you to our halls, and various campus sites. And if you need to get to Kedleston Road another way, or at the weekend, you can still come by the Allestree bus, which drops you off at the main road.

5. Which sites are courses based at?

Starting in the city centre, you'll find our Law and Social Sciences space at One Friar Gate Square.

Moving along Ashbourne Road, you'll find courses in Art and Design, Engineering and Technology, and Health and Social Care at Britannia Mill and Markeaton Street.

Then at Kedleston Road, you'll find our largest site where the rest of our courses are based, such as Business, Humanities, Education, Science, and the rest of Health, Psychology and Social Care.

You can explore facilities at each campus site by using our Virtual Tour.

One Friar Gate Square

Read more about the city including where our students recommend and which places might suit your interests.